Examples of Our Easements

Wally Woods Conservation Easement - Honoring a Loved One

Waldo Woods, known to most as Wally Woods, owns 35 beautiful acres in Montrose, Pennsylvania. He and his late wife, Kathy, purchased this land in 1980, and eventually moved there permanently. Wally and Kathy were attracted to this land because it had three things they had always wanted: a nice stream, a nice mountain, and a convenient location. Previously used for livestock grazing and orchards, the land is now home to Wally and his son. Wally’s property is peppered with sentiment and love for the land and the people in his life. Because his property is now protected “in perpetuity” by a conservation easement, the Edward L. Rose Conservancy can make sure that the values and land cherished by Kathy and Wally may be preserved forever.

“I want this land to stay in my family.”

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Wally placed a conservation easement on this property to ensure the land could stay in the family and be preserved for his children and grandchildren. His son currently lives in another house on the property, but for his family members that don’t live on site, Wally wanted to keep this land as a natural space for his family to escape to. He noted that his grandchildren especially love Meshoppen Creek that runs through the property, and use it for swimming and salamander hunting. In addition to protecting the natural beauty of the land, conservation easements can help keep the land in the family by reducing the tax charged when transferring estates between family members or for inheritance purposes.

Wally’s wife Kathy was also a strong inspiration for placing the conservation easement. After her passing Wally was unsure about what was going to happen with the land, but he knew that “she would have wanted to keep the land in the family.” Kathy had a strong connection with the environment, and as Wally said, “She really was touch-the-earth. I used to call her my earth lady.” Wally maintains a pollinator garden in memory of Kathy, along with a rose garden planted in memory of his wife, mother, and grandmother.

His hope to keep the land in the family, preserve the land ethic practiced by his wife, and protect the property from the gas drilling expanding in Susquehanna county all motivated Wally to place a conservation easement on his property. After finding out about the Edward L Rose Conservancy in a newspaper ad, he began working with Conservancy board members to get the conservation easement process going, and the easement was finalized in 2016.

The Wally Woods property has a beautiful hillside of continuous deciduous woods, a “visual treat” for people passing by, and serves as important woodland habitat in an area where such expanse of forest is becoming rare. His forests will serve as valuable habitat for large mammals and bird species that need large woodlands for nesting, like woodpeckers, thrushes, warblers and vireos. This stretch of Meshoppen Creek is an important source of water for wildlife, and because of its high water quality, will provide critical habitat for amphibians, salamanders, fish and other wildlife.

Wally also works to enhance habitat for wildlife by installing bird houses, planting trees and maintaining his pollinator garden. Given the fantastic opportunities to see wildlife, wildflowers and stars on the property, Wally hopes to one day make this property a nature education center for youth.

Nancy Wottrich and Bruce McNaught Conservation Easement - Keeping Land in the Family

As environmental professionals for several decades, Nancy and Bruce were no strangers to the world of conservation easements. Both Nancy and Bruce have done a lot of work for the Edward L Rose Conservancy; Bruce served on the board for several years and Nancy worked on several conservation easements for the Conservancy. But after years of placing easements on other properties, it was time to make sure that their property, so filled with scenic beauty, important wildlife habitat, and nearly half a century’s worth of family memories, was protected forever. Even as they sat by their ponds amidst the noise and bright lights and constant traffic during a year of intense gas drilling in Susquehanna County, Nancy said it was a good feeling to know at least this view wasn’t going to change. “It meant a lot that at least we could protect this land, no one could come in and build another house or remove the woods or drain the pond. That was us taking real ownership of the land...an important aspect that completed the things we already do to protect this property.”

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The land was originally purchased in 1975 by Bruce’s father, a commercial science illustrator. He and his friend were nearing retirement and so together they traveled all up the east coast looking for a big piece of land where they could build two houses for their families, live a more simple life, and eventually retire. After many bouts of camping and traveling, they finally saw a property ad in a Country Journal magazine. When they arrived on site, they were struck by the two picturesque ponds and the little valley surrounded by forest. After camping on the land for a couple days, they decided that this property was what they had been searching for.

Bruce’s brother-in-law designed and built a house for Bruce’s parents, and their friends built a house on the neighboring property. His parents lived on this land for 20 years until they were unable to take care of it, and then Nancy and Bruce purchased the property to use as a vacation home for several years. Each time it became harder for Bruce and Nancy to leave the peaceful Montrose property, and eventually this and other factors motivated them to leave Philadelphia and move the family to Montrose permanently.

When struggling to decide whether they should move to Montrose permanently, Nancy recounts a memory of sitting on the dock at the Montrose property, getting ready to go back home, and just appreciating the tranquility of the place. “It was so peaceful, and so quiet. You couldn’t hear any traffic at all, and then this raven flies over calling, and it was an epiphany moment for me. I knew that yes, moving to Montrose was what we were meant to do, because if there’s ravens here, I’m gonna live here.” (Ravens are Nancy’s favorite bird.)

“We wanted to protect the land ethic and protect this place that my parents had cherished.”

This land is clearly a very special place for Nancy and Bruce, it being where Bruce grew up and were he and Nancy raised a family of their own. Moreover, the architect of the house, Bruce’s brother-in-law, passed away, and the house is a valuable part of his legacy. The property is still a hub of many family gatherings, which usually includes fishing and kayaking on the ponds. As Bruce said, the ponds are “really the reason we are all here, they are what makes this land really special.” The ponds are what first drew Bruce’s father to the land, and they are the center of many family activities and recreation. In times when the heavy gas drilling of Susquehanna County have made Bruce and Nancy reconsider whether they want to stay in Montrose, Nancy noted that the ponds and landscape motivated them to stay. “When I come back home and see those ponds it’s like I can breathe again. I come over the hill and I’m away from all the chaos.”

Their five-acre pond and its surrounding wetland also provide critical habitat for wildlife and plants. On their own, Nancy and Bruce have completely inventoried the types of dragonflies and plants present, and have reported over 200 species of birds! During spring and summer, Nancy and Bruce can also see stunning wildflowers dotting the forested hillside along wildflower trails they’ve maintained. They’ve done a lot of work to preserve native habitat, including the strenuous work to battle invasive plants like garlic mustard and multiflora rose. Bruce and Nancy have also worked to enhance their property for wildlife by installing bluebird and wood duck houses, as well as planting trees around the property.

“We are keeping the tradition of the love of the land my parents had.”

After much of the gas drilling in Susquehanna County, even on a neighboring property, Bruce and Nancy became especially concerned about the conservation and future of their property. They decided to approach the Conservancy to start the easement process in 2009, and the conservation easement was finalized in 2011. They actually went through the conservation easement process with their neighbors, Tina and Tim, also second generation owners of their property. While these easements are not legally connected, the two families did the easement process at the same time, going through every step of the way together. Bruce said it helped to be with other landowners going through the same process and making sure each other stayed on top of each step. In going through this process together, they were able to learn much more about their neighbor’s land and the history of the area. Having adjacent properties protected by easements is incredibly valuable for conservation because when larger areas are protected, this means greater protection for nature, especially wildlife that may require larger areas of land to thrive.

As much as Bruce and Nancy love their Montrose home, they agree that it is very labor intensive to manage the land, and that they won’t be able to live here forever. But a conservation easement gave them the assurance that even after they were gone from this property, their land would remain forever protected.